Rich Rust, the president of Local 1680 of the Council of Prison Locals for the American Federation of Government Employees, stands outside of the Terminal Island Federal Prison on Thursday, Jan. 17. Rust, like some 800,000 other federal employees, has gone unpaid since the government shutdown started on Dec. 22. Correction officers worry for their safety as employees go unpaid and overworked. (Photo by Emily Rasmussen, Long Beach Press-Telegram/SCNG)

Corrections officer Francis J. Lindsay Sr. has been working — and sleeping — at the Los Angeles federal prison in Downtown L.A. for the past three days.

With the government shutdown in its fourth week, some of Lindsay’s coworkers, lacking paychecks, have had to leave for other jobs or take sick days — and are struggling to survive. So Lindsay has volunteered to help pick up the extra shifts, though he, too, is working without pay.

About 800,000 federal employees have been furloughed or forced to work without pay since Dec. 22 because of the partial government shutdown. Congress and President Donald Trump have yet to fund multiple federal departments and agencies, such as Homeland Security, as they grapple over whether to fund Trump’s proposed border wall.

More than 41,000 federal law enforcement and correctional officers are considered essential, meaning they have to work for free during the shutdown — including 16,742 employees with the Bureau of Prisons, according to the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations.

The workers will likely get back pay once the shutdown ends. But in the meantime, many are struggling to make ends meet, according to prison union leaders with the American Federation of Government Employees.

During a press conference Thursday morning, Jan. 17, at the federal prison on Terminal Island, those leaders spoke about the effects of the shutdown on the prison system.

“We don’t care what happens,” said Rich Rust, who works at the Terminal Island prison, in San Pedro. “We just want the (two sides) to get together, get something done, so we can get paid for the work we’re doing.”

The Bureau of Prisons did not respond to a request for comment. But an email sent to the agency received an automatic reply:

“Due to the partial government shutdown,” it read, “responses to inquiries will be delayed. We appreciate your patience during this time.”

Since the shutdown, Lindsay said, at least three of his coworkers have had to move in with family members because they cannot afford rent. The younger employees — some with small children, many living paycheck-to-paycheck — are particularly hurt by the shutdown, he added.

Lindsay is frustrated. To help fill in for colleagues, he’s worked double shifts for three straight days. He’s slept in his car.

“When I signed up for this job,” Lindsay said, “I didn’t sign up to be used as a political ploy.”

Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragán, a Democrat whose district includes Terminal Island, urged the Senate on Thursday to pass the bipartisan spending bills previously agreed to by Congress — and for Trump to sign them — so the government can reopen and pay workers.

“It is egregious,” Barragan said, “that federal correctional officers here on Terminal Island, and throughout the country, are being forced to do the dangerous job of keeping order, and maintaining safety and security at federal correctional facilities without pay.

“The president,” she added, “needs to recognize that this government shutdown is creating unnecessary security risks in our communities.”

Lindsay said he is not the only one working extra shifts for colleagues who cannot afford to make it in.

That has added stress to an already taxing job, he added, with the corrections officers increasingly worried about their safety — especially as they become tired or overworked.

There are 36,000 Federal Bureau of Prisons employees nationwide — and they oversee more than 180,000 inmates, many of them violent offenders. The Terminal Island facility has 1,100 prisoners.

“We’re in an environment where we’re constantly looking over our shoulder,” said Lindsay, a 24-year corrections officer who works at MDC Los Angeles, a detention center in Downtown L.A. with 700 inmates. “We have murderers, rapists, child molesters — anything and everything you can think of.”

Assaults in prisons are a daily occurrence, Lindsay said. And as the shutdown continues, the danger grows.

“It may come down to somebody actually being harmed — or worse, killed,” he said.

Rust on Thursday echoed his colleague’s concerns.

“I’m really worried about staff safety,” he said. “If you happen to be tired, you might miss something.

In corrections, we’re trained to be observant,” Rust added. “And if you’re tired, if your mind is on other things, you might miss something.”

And Rust knows his coworkers are distracted.

One faces eviction in February if he can’t pay his rent.

Another has to pay child support — and only has $17 in his checking account. He’s picked up a weekend job doing construction.

“We have had sick calls double since (the shutdown) started,” Rust said.

Rust is less worried about putting food on the table for his family, because his wife is an elementary school teacher. But many of his coworkers are married and the sole income earner.

To help out, Rust has also been working overtime.

Rust is a veteran. He’s worked at Terminal Island for 17 years and has seen a lot — including the 2013 government shutdown that lasted 16 days.

But this one feels different, he said.

“There seems to be no end in sight,” Rust said.

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Emily covers education and development for the Long Beach Press-Telegram. A native of Long Beach, Emily is an alumna of the Cal State Long Beach Journalism Department. Prior to joining the Press-Telegram, Emily was city editor of The Capistrano Dispatch in San Juan Capistrano, a contributing writer for the Orange County Register and the news editor for The Edge in Long Beach.